RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and posterior cruciate ligament-retaining total knee arthroplasty are effective for people who were subjected to medial compartment lesions of the knee; however, the short-term effect of middle-aged and elderly people living in mountainous area needs further exploration. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the short-term efficacy of unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and posterior cruciate ligament-retaining total knee arthroplasty in middle-aged and elderly people with medial compartment osteoarthritis of knee joint in Chengde. METHODS: A total of 67 middle-aged and elderly patients with medial compartment osteoarthritis of the knee were selected from January 2017 to February 2019 in the Department of Joint Surgery, Affiliated Hospital of Chengde Medical College. Totally 31 patients in group A were treated with unicompartmental knee arthroplasty and 36 patients in group B were treated with posterior cruciate ligament-retaining total knee arthroplasty. All patients signed the informed consent. This study was approved by the Hospital Ethics Committee. Intraoperative blood loss, postoperative blood transfusion, postoperative hemoglobin decline, hematocrit and C-reactive protein at postoperative 1 and 3 days, and Forgotten Joint Scores at 1, 3, and 6 months and 1 year after surgery were observed and compared between the two groups. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) The perioperative hemoglobin decline, intraoperative blood loss, and blood transfusion rate were significantly lower, and postoperative hospitalization date was significantly shorter in group A than those in group B (P 0.05). (3) The Forgotten Joint Scores in group A were significantly higher than those in group B at 1, 3, and 6 months and 1 year after operation (P < 0.01). (4) No complications such as lower extremity venous thrombosis, pulmonary embolism and infection occurred in both groups. (5) In summary, unicompartmental knee arthroplasty has the advantages of less intraoperative bleeding, lower transfusion rate, and higher degree of Forgotten Joint Scores for the middle-aged and elderly patients with medial compartment lesions in mountainous areas.